Woodinville Heritage Society presents | Mount St. Helens, 40 years later

The Woodinville Heritage Society presents a community program that views Mount St. Helens 40 years after it erupted in 1980.

This free program is on Saturday, March 18, from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Eric Wagner will present at the Brightwater Education Center, located at 22505 State Route 9 (Woodinville-Snohomish Rd), just north of Costco.

Wagner is a writer and biologist. He holds a Ph.D. in biology from the University of Washington, where he studied penguins. He is the author of three books, including After the Blast: The Ecological Recovery of Mount St. Helens. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Orion, and High Country News, among numerous other publications.

After the devastating blast of May 18, 1980, the belief was that it would take ages for life to return to the mountain. But it was soon after that, scientists were amazed to find plants sprouting up through the ash and animals appearing.

In the decades since the mountain erupted, ecologists have studied how resilient the blast zone was in the face of total devastation.

During the presentation, Wagner will take attendees through the blast zone to discover how plants and animals survived the eruption. He will illustrate the roles people have played, and how fascinating Mount St. Helens is 40 years after the blast.

Wagner’s appearance is courtesy of the Speaker's Bureau of Humanities Washington. For more information, contact Kevin Stadler at 206-660-7080.